Since the 17th century, Boston has played a vital role in the history of the United States as a center of society and intellectual ferment. So it's not surprising that the city also has a deeply rooted gay and lesbian culture. Improper Bostonians is a lavishly illustrated, astutely researched look at the role that homosexuals have played in constructing Boston society. From the private homoerotic letters of John Winthrop (the first Governor of Massachusetts) to the 19th-century concept of the "Boston Marriage"--the widely-used term for two unmarried women living together as partners--to the open and brash gay and lesbian life that existed in Boston's notorious Scully Square in the 1920s and 1930s, Improper Bostonians deftly shows how gay men and lesbians were always present in the social, political, and intellectual life of the city.

But as smart as its text is, the best feature of the book is its stunning array of engravings, paintings, news clippings, and photographs (many from personal collections) illustrating the book's themes. Looking over the portraits of politicians, poets (including Katherine Lee Bates, author of "America the Beautiful"), and performers one is reminded that gay and lesbian history is really not a separate category, but a single aspect of our collective history. --Michael Bronski


From Library Journal
Compiled by a nonprofit volunteer group of historians, archivists, and writers known as The History Project, this book stems from research begun in 1980 and first presented as an exhibit at the Boston Public Library in 1996. By turns informative, amusing, and heartbreaking, this marvelously illustrated culmination documents 300 years of gay and lesbian life in the U.S. city with their longest history. Research draws on newspapers, diaries, oral history, archives, and even advertising. Both women and men are discussed equally, and the accounts of life in the 19th century?of Boston marriages and the bohemian group, The Visionists?are particularly informative. There is an extensive list of documentary notes and photo credits that will aid future researchers. This first-of-its-kind book on Boston straddles the line between George Chauncey's more scholarly Gay New York (BasicBks., 1994) and Jim Van Buskirk's more visual San Francisco history, Gay by the Bay (LJ 4/1/96). This remarkable work is highly recommended for public and academic libraries.?Lisa N. Johnston, Sweet Briar Coll. Lib., VACopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


The Boston Globe, Renee Graham
[T]his is more coffee-table book than encyclopedia, and far more enjoyable for it. The history presented is well balanced between men and women, and people of color.... [A] rare book in many ways, both entertaining and educational, as it uncovers a welcome slice of this city's long-hidden, but no less worthwhile, history.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Drawing on newspaper accounts private archives, advertisements, and other sources, Improper Bostonians introduces us to men and women who flouted conventional gender rules, were unapologetic about their lifestyles, and tried to make sense of their sexuality - sometimes at great cost. As Improper Bostonians delves into its subject through an extraordinary variety of perspectives and periods, subjects and sources, it also explores the impact of historic events and trends - including Prohibition, censorship, World War II, the Kinsey reports on human sexuality, and urban development in the 1960s. Featuring two hundred images, this is a fascinating introduction to the rich gay heritage of the Athens of America.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal